New beginnings

My first day on my own. A little daunting. This is the first time I have been away from home and on my own. My family and all I know and are familiar with are over 800 miles away. It hit me when I woke up that I am responsible for me and any trouble I get into. A quick call to dad to come bring me my spare key is not a very viable option any more. It feels good to be independent. I'm very happy with where I am and how I'm handling the different obstacles and bumps in the road that are unavoidable. Getting a California Paramedic Card and Drivers License have proven to be time consuming and a nuisance. But I should have both by the end of the next two weeks. 

I went for a run on the beach and let me tell you, these little guys are everywhere. They're the equivilant of ants on the beach. except they jump.... and they look injured and totally handicapped while doing so. The hops are never in a straight line and they never go the same direction twice. You feel them hit your feet and ankles as you walk.

A little hut on the beach. It was about a mile walk from where I parked but it was totally worth it.

It's been foggy every day I've been here. Especially on the beach. But, if you drive five miles inland, you run into weather that is at least 30' warmer and sunny.

I drove up to that grove of trees after this walk on the beach. Unfortunately the fog had settled in even more and I did not get to see much off of the overlook.

Pictures do not do the landscape justice.. atleast in this one the fisherman on the rock gives you something to compare sizes to.

This is that overlook that I had mentioned a few pictures ago.

This was about all I could see. I can't wait to go back on a clear day, I imagine the view would be awesome!

Oh and I locked my keys in my car for the second time while being here... which is a total of 3 days... GO ME! I decided to not take another huge hit to my pride and called someone other than my Shift coordinator to help me break in. Thank you AAA. :)

New Place, New Adventures

Three weeks ago I applied for a couple Paramedic jobs out of state just for the heck of it. I had been working for Rocky Mountain Raceways on their safety team, my passion for Emergency Medicine was rekindled and I was hungry for more. I wanted to be able to practice to the full scope of practice as a licensed medic, not just as an EMT. Careers in EMS are very competitive in Utah and I had tested for SLCFD. I had missed the written test cutoff by a single point. Two agencies that I had applied to out of state had gotten back to me and had asked for interviews over the phone. One was for Lander, WY and the other was for Del Norte County EMS in Northern California. Which one would you have chosen? Well I chose Northern Cali. It's the most Northwestern county in California. I would be on the coast and 20 miles from the Oregon border. The phone interview went well and I was nervous but excited to hear back. I received a phone call a couple days later. They were interested in me and wanted a letter of recommendation. I didn't want this opportunity to escape me so I asked both my Supervisor at RMR, and the head of the Paramedic Program to write one for me. The letters they wrote brought me to tears. They were so kind and supportive. They surpassed my expectations greatly. I cannot thank those two individuals enough. Those letters were the deciding factor that ended up getting me the job. I was to report 2 weeks from when I got the official phone call and email offering the job. I accepted and started my preparations for this life changing event. 

I absolutely hate saying good bye. Saying see you later however, isn't any easier. I filled those two weeks with countless visits, adventures, and laughs with those I care about the most. I've come to learn that living life unguarded and with your heart out in the open is so rewarding but makes feelings (both good, bad, happy and sad) so much more vivid and intense. I wouldn't have it any other way though. I would rather have high highs and low lows than be numb to feelings. 

My Safety Family at RMR was one of the hardest see you laters I had to do. I was brought on with open arms and made friendships that will last a lifetime. I cannot say thank you enough to all of you for making me feel so welcomed and loved. I will come back and visit, I promise. 

Jason, you my friend, will be missed too. We did everything together. I've spent more time with you over the last 5 months than I have with my own family. I'm so glad to have gotten to know you, the love, laughs, talks, adventures, quiet moments, celebrations and hugs we have shared will always be with me! I cherish those. I intend to keep you around if nothing more than just a friend for life whether you like it or not. :)

Whitney, my bestest friend and partner in crime. I can't believe we have been friends for over 8 years! Time has flown by and I'm so glad that I've had you by my side through the good and bad. You're the best friend a girl could ask for. Supportive, adventurous, crazy, gorgeous, kind, loving.... the list goes on and on. I'm still going to try and come out to go to that concert that I told you we would go to for your birthday! You're always welcome out this way too!

Jared and Haval. haha I don't even know what to say other than I wish you were here with me to drive me crazy and make me laugh. You two have been the best! I'm sooo lucky to have you two as great examples and support in my life. I don't know what my life would be like with out you.

To my dear family. Thank you soo much for coming out and staying the first night with me in my new place. When I accepted the job, I thought I would be coming out here alone. Your love and support have made this possible and much easier than I thought it would be. I can't wait to see you all again soon!

Now that all of that has been said, lets get to the pictures of the Adventure so far :)

The morning my mom and I left for Crescent City. My little red car with and even littler trailer. And Nana on top ready to hit the road. 

My mom is notorious for the notes she leaves. These were the ones explaining how to take care of the critters while she would be out of town. Novels!

Mom and I got in to town late and stayed at a little motel close to the beach. In the morning we walked the pier while we waited for Kam and Courtney to get up and call us. They are on a 3 week long trek that will take them from Salt Lake down to San Fran, and then up the coast to Vancouver and Banff. They were in the area at the same time I was moving in and were able to meet up with my mom and I for a day. How lucky is that?

It is so green here. Blackberries grow like weeds and the trees are some of the largest I've seen.

Mom, I'm soo glad you made the trip with me. That drive would have been unbearable without you! I appreciate your love and support so much! I could not have done all of this without you! Come back and see me soon. We will walk the beaches for hours and find more treasures!

Crab shells litter the shore everywhere!

This is the Battery Point Lighthouse. It's maybe 3 miles from my apartment

The first time I saw one of these I thought it was a piece of plastic or trash. Come to find out it is a Man of War Jellyfish. Google the sting of these things. Brutal! I'll keep a better eye out for them from now on.

My mom, brother and Courtney all decided to go walk around the Redwoods. Everyone needs to see them atleast once in their life. I have never felt soo small and insignificant as I did while walking through them. I felt no bigger than an ant.

I'm so glad I had the opportunity to share this with these two. I love them more than they'll ever know!

This is my cute little apartment, It has a really nice kitchen, perfect for entertaining. The garage is more than large enough to fit my car and all of the toys I brought with me. I even have a little fenced off section of yard that I can do with what I please. I would like to plant some herbs and maybe some peas or peppers and put a few more pavers out so I can place a chair or two and a table to sit at.

The last night that my mom, Kam and Court would be spending with me, we had a fire on the beach. It was perfect in every way. Thanks for the suggestion Kam!

My dad arrived really early in the morning. I woke up around 6:30 and met up with him to walk the beach and explore a bit while the others slept in and got some much needed rest. We found a live sand dollar. Its the first one I've seen. I didn't know they had little feet on the bottom of them!

Its always foggy or cloudy, I can foresee that one thing that I will miss about Utah is the direct sun. I haven't had to use my sunglasses more than an hour yet and I've been here three days. 

Dad, Thank you so much for coming out of your way on your way home from Vancouver to see me and my new place. The day I got to spend with you was special and perfect. From walking the beach, and redwoods to the dinner you cooked me and watching movies on my laptop in camp chairs afterward. I can't wait for you to come back out so I can show you more.

My dad and I were early enough to catch the lignhthouse while the tide was out. Normally, the path to it is under a couple feet of water making it hard to get to. We sat on one of the picnic tables and took a selfie. The lighthouse keeper saw us and came out to talk with us for a minute. They weren't open for tours but he was nice enough to give us a brief history and talk.

The keeper of the lighthouse brought out cat food in a tin cup to feed this little guy with. He ate it right out of my hand!

After walking the beach, My dad and I went up to the Redwoods so he could see first hand the grandeur of them.

We went to a beach on the way back to my apartment and found some little crabs to play with. They were fast and would wedge themselves in the rock. I have yet to catch one. They make my nervous. I don't want to get pinched.

Thanks again dad for coming out. It means a lot to me! Can't wait to show you and Grandma a few new beaches I've found. They're beautiful!

Crazy Week!

"I believe that we are who we choose to be. Nobody is going to come and save you. You've got to save yourself. Nobody is going to give you anything. You've got to go our and fight for it. Nobody knows what you want except you, and nobody will be as sorry as you if you don't get it. So don't give up on your dreams."   -Unknown.

Life has been soo busy recently, I feel like I haven't had much time to sit back and catch my breath. School is getting to be overwhelming. This morning I took an exam that covered more than 700 pages, 15 chapters and a variety of subjects. This week was going to be a week off.... So much for that. I've also taken it upon myself for reasons unknown to design a class t-shirt. 

This week has also been one of the craziest weeks of my life. It started off with back to back clinicals at the University of Utah Medical Center Emergency Department. Sunday I went in at 1300 and left at 0100 Monday morning and had to be back up there to follow Salt Lake City Fire Department's Medical Director around at 0900. Sunday's night shift was crazy busy! We had trauma after trauma come in. I had the opportunity to talk to a handful of nurses and techs and learn some valuable information that I have a feeling will help me out in the months to come. I was very successful with my IV starts and have become more confident in my abilities to choose a site and hit my mark. Monday's shift was one full of firsts and crazies. I experienced things that I hope never to see smell or come in contact with in any way, ever again. I'll just leave the description at decontamination for feces, yeast infection, and maggots, oh and a poorly cared for gastrostomy bag... I definitely needed something to take my mind off of medical things even just for a little while.

I've been looking at rodeo kayaks for a few weeks now and have contacted heaven only knows how many people about their posts on KSL. There were a few boats that I called to go look at and they had been sold just hours before. I feel this was a blessing in disguise. I found a little yellow 6.5' Dagger Ultrafuge for sale by a college kid living in Provo and decided to go have a look and see if it was one that might work. I sat in it and the padding was just where it needed to be and fit like a glove. Needless to say, I'm now the happy owner of said kayak. Haval made the trip with me and we had the brilliant idea to see if Jared would let us come use his pool to learn to Eskimo Roll in. He said yes, so I called my dad up and asked if he would come and talk us through how to execute one. I struggled with it for a while and needed a break. Haval hopped into a kayak for his first time ever and on his third try, managed to right  himself. Me, being the fierce competitor I am had to try and try and try again until I could do it for myself. Best investment I've made in a while :D I can't wait to play with it more this spring as the weather gets better.

Wednesday was my study day. I read and reread and tested myself until my mind turned to mush, and then I went and picked out a new set of whitewater paddles and a rafting life vest! 

Thursday I just had to go out and play with my new toys and try the significantly shorter paddles out. They took some getting used to but are much easier to maneuver in the tiny kayak. It was a lovely way to start my morning and destress a bit. I then retreated back to Sugarhouse coffee to do my last stent of studying before the big test Friday morning. I felt confident in how the pretests were going and the information I had covered. Logan text me and said he was done with his last final and we decided to go out and celebrate so we went shooting. I love going out to shoot with that kid, we always have a good time. We had a good chance to catch up on life and how things were going with old friends we used to hang out with over dinner at the Pie Pizzaria. I'm amazed with how fast time flies and how good friends can be apart for various reasons for long periods of time and get back together and it seems like you were never apart! One can never have too many friends and I'm lucky to have some of the best to be had!

Hopefully the results of this test prove that my hard work and concentration have paid off and that I'm showing enough progress and improvement that my teachers will be happy with my performance. I'm looking forward to the weeks to come and the warm weather that summer will hopefully bring!